The New England Patriots have been dominant for over a decade. The Carolina Panthers have not. However, they are becoming the team to beat in the league. Coming off a major victory in San Francisco, they host Tom Brady and the Patriots for another big game. Last week they made a statement and this week they look to add an exclamation point to it. The Patriots are coming off a bye and a game before that against the Pittsburgh Steelers where they put 55 points up. The Panthers defense is only giving up 12.8 points per game.
It has been a very humbling season for Brady who lost Wes Welker, Aaron Hernandez, and Rob Gronkowski for part of the season. He has managed to lead this team to 7-2, but he has been frustrated with his young receivers who are missing catches that his veteran receiver would have easily caught. The Panthers have won the time of possession battle during their win streak and it will be up to the Patriots’ offense to try and keep the ball in their quarterback’s hands. The Panthers just have to continue doing exactly what they are doing. They have to keep running the ball especially against decimated Patriots’ defense. This will be a great test to see if middle linebacker Luke Kuechly deserves to be called one of the best middle linebackers in the league. Kuechly will have to match wits with one of the smartest quarterbacks of all time.
This is a huge matchup for the Panthers and especially Cam Newton. He will be playing against Tom Brady who has had a week off to prepare for this game. This will also be a big test for the Patriots defense who has lost almost all of its veteran leaders. Tom Brady can handle the spotlights on him and I think that will prove to be the difference maker. Cam Newton has grown leaps and bounds this season, but he is still making mistakes that his defense has been able to cover up. This one should be a close, low scoring game. Panthers vs. Patriots- who you takin?
